Francesca Beauman

A Year of Seasonal Reading

The Literary Almanac

A clever, thoughtful, and funny history that reveals how our the Union of states was built on a much more personal union of people. What could the relationships of homesteaders in 19th century New England possible have in common with the iphones and millennials today? At once heartbreaking and heartwarming, Matrimony Inc. reveals the common thread that wends its way through not just marriages and relationships throughout the centuries, but American social history itself: personal ads. Often dismissed as the realm of desperate lonelyhearts or worse, advertising for relationships, whether for pure love and companionship or the more practical societal elements of marriage, played a surprisingly vital role in early American society. Today, dating apps are essentially technologically evolved personal ads that allow people to match with potential partners even more rapidly and (hopefully) successfully thanks to sophisticated alogirthms. And yet, online profiles, like the print ads before them, remain puzzles to be solved. Decades ago, you would find "Man who likes pasta seeks woman who likes sauce.” What intimate mysteries are held within such a line? As early as 1722, marriage ads were popping up in colonial American papers. Matchmakers and family-arranged marriages were falling out of fashion, and soon "Husband Wanted" or "Seeking Wife" ads would appear from Washington to Wyoming, Kansas to California. These ads provided a vital service, particularly for white settlers on the American frontier. The homestead land policies encouraged marriage by making it hugely financially worthwhile. “So anxious are our settlers for wives that they never ask a single lady her age. All they require is teeth,” declared a correspondent for the Dubuque Iowa News in 1838 in a state where men outnumbered women three to one. Though the dating pools of New York or San Francisco might not be dentally-fixated, Matrimony Inc. will put idly swiping through Tinder into fascinating and vividly fresh historical context.

From Personal Ads to Swiping Right: A Story of America Looking for Love

Matrimony, Inc.

This enchanting, juicy history takes us from the pineapple's origins in the Amazon rainforests to its first tasting by Columbus in Guadeloupe and its starring role on the royal dinner tables of Europe. In the eighteenth-century this spectacular fruit reigned supreme: despite the fact that, at first, to cultivate just one cost the same as a new coach, every great house soon boasted its own steaming pits filled with hundreds upon hundreds of pineapple plants. As the Prada handbag of its day, a real-life, homegrown pineapple was a powerful status symbol, so much so that at first, it was extremely unusual actually to eat the fruit. The image appeared on gateposts, on teapots, furniture and wallpaper. A new phase opened when growers in the Caribbean began supplying pineapples in the 1840s and later the first canning factory was built in Hawaii. As the story rolls on, through the heyday of pineapple chunks and cocktails, right up to the fashions of today,it touches on pineapples and sex, pineapples and empire, pineapples in art. Why is the pineapple so special? In one surprising sense it is indeed ideal. Made up of hundreds of separate fruitlets, its spirals embody the gradations of the Golden Mean - it is mathematically perfect. But it is more than that - for years a focus of traveller's tales, it is a treasure of sight and scent and taste. Packed with fascinating illustrations, this delicious book sees Fran Beauman explore the life and lore of the king of fruits: scholarly, witty and fun, it is a true hamper of delights.

King of Fruits

The Pineapple

Discover over 300 seasonal book recommendations in the ultimate reading list for book lovers everywhere. ----- 'I will be giving this book to everyone I know' - Elizabeth Day 'Francesca Beauman writes about the books she loves with irresistible passion, knowledge and warmth ... This is the best kind of reading celebration' - Rachel Joyce ----- Spanning the dreary, cold days of January to the first flushes of spring and then the blazing August heat, bibliophile Francesca Beauman offers up a wealth of book recommendations. From The Count of Monte Cristo to Elena Ferrante's Neapolitan Quartet, each has been selected to chime with a particular time of year and provide a richer reading experience. Beautifully illustrated throughout, this charming guide will delight, inspire and seriously extend your 'To Be Read' list!

A year of seasonal reading

Have you ever wondered about the average age of brides 500 years ago or whether you are legally allowed to marry your brother's daughter's husband? Are you familiar with the marriage customs of the Na people of south-west China? Or would you know what to do if a swarm of bees attacked your wedding reception?Wonder no more! Within these pages you will find all you need to know (and a few things you don't) in order to enter into the dizzying, daring dance that is a modern marriage.From the totally frivolous to the deeply serious, from champagne consumption in the Yemen to celebrity wedding dress designers, How to Wear White is a funny, eclectic and essential addition to every twenty-first-century bride's trousseau.True, you may not ever need to know the names of all of Elizabeth Taylor's spouses or how to say 'My husband' in Norwegian, but isn't it fabulous that you do?

A Pocketbook for the Bride-To-be

How to Wear White

Within these pages you will find all you need to know (and a few things you don't) in order to embark on the mindboggling journey that is modern motherhood. Discover humorous yet pertinent advice on everything from what a new mother ought to wear on the red carpet to the best books to read while feeding a baby, and marvel at what Mark Twain had to say on teething, Vladimir Nabokov on prams, Mrs Gaskell on six-month-olds and Mrs Beeton on breastfeeding. From the totally frivolous to the deeply serious, from the cultural to the historical, from the history of the Caesarean to celebrity baby names, this is an intelligent, classy and eclectic guide for every twenty-first-century mother or mother-to-be. For it is important to acknowledge that, even though they may have a basketball in their stomachs, they still have a brain in their heads. It is a book to give to friends, daughters and sisters - and to cherish for yourself. True, you may not ever need to know what year the epidural was invented, how to write your child's name in Chinese, or what the gestation period of an anteater is, but isn't it fabulous to know that you do?

Francesca Beauman

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